UK small-business confidence plummets, worst in Scotland, N. Ireland

EDINBURGH, March 18 (Reuters) - Confidence among Britain's
small businesses has plummeted, a survey showed on Friday, with
Northern Irish and Scottish businesses the least confident in
the face of a global economic slowdown and public-sector
austerity.

The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) first-quarter
survey showed the first decline in job creation by small firms
nationwide since mid-2013.

Finance minister George Osborne gave tax breaks to small
businesses in Wednesday's budget after downgrading growth
forecasts, but the outlook is clouded by an upcoming vote on
whether Britain should remain a member of the European Union
membership .

A separate FSB survey earlier this month found 42 percent of
4,000 members were undecided about how they would vote on the
EU, and more than half felt they were not well-enough informed.

The Small Business Index, measuring business prospects over
the coming three months, fell to 8.6 in the first quarter from
28.7 a year ago, its lowest since a -5.6 reading in the fourth
quarter of 2012.

Optimism has fallen year-on-year this quarter in every part
of the UK, with the largest declines in the East of England and
London.

One in four small firms cited tax and regulatory burdens as
a restraining factor, and exports had their weakest performance
since 2012.

In Northern Ireland, where confidence ratings are negative,
the report highlighted the region's dependence on the public
sector, which is cutting jobs and keeping a lid on pay.

It said the decision last month by plane maker Bombardier
Inc to cut over 1,000 Belfast jobs was also likely to
weigh on confidence and hurt small firms in the supply chain.

In Scotland, where pessimism was also prevalent, the survey
noted the impact of a slump in oil prices, which has hurt
Scotland's oil-dependent northeast, as well as pressures on the
services sector.

Almost two-thirds of Scottish business owners said the state
of the domestic economy was a barrier to their own growth.
(Reporting By Elisabeth O'Leary in Edinburgh and Padraic Halpin
in Dublin, editing by Larry King)